In a typical dust collector, a series of filters are supported by a dividing wall to separate particulate materials from a flow of air. At times when dust has accumulated on the filters and restricts the air flow, a reverse air pulse is directed through the filters in a direction opposite to the primary air flow to dislodge accumulated dust from the filters. The pressures and flow rates in both directions can produce substantial forces on the filters. Accordingly, there are times when the filters must be replaced. Unfortunately many prior art designs do not provide sufficient access to the filters to permit easy replacement. Such forces also exert substantial stresses on the mounting for the filters to the dividing wall and to the gaskets or seals between the filters and the dividing wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,452,616 to Gillingham et al. discloses a self-cleaning air filter with filter elements supported from the inlet side of the dividing wall. Each filter element includes a gasket at the end wall thereof to engage the dividing wall in an air tight manner when the filter element is forced against the wall by a cam at the opposite end of the filter element. In this arrangement, however, the filter elements are not readily accessible. More particularly, if a filter most remote from the access panel were in need of replacement, many filters between the access panel and the malfunctioning filter would have to be removed to allow the filter to be replaced.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,278,454 to Nemesi discloses a cartridge filter apparatus wherein the cartridge is secured to the underside of the dividing wall by a threaded connector rod. The connector rod is suspended from the top side of the dividing wall by an inductor unit. The arrangement is provided with a gasket at the peripheral edge of the inductor unit. However, the gasket must support the entire weight of the cartridge and the inductor unit during operation of the dust collector which includes the pressures of a main air flow and a reverse air flow. The gasket must therefore flex to maintain the seal without being over compressed and damaged. Further, this arrangement provides a tedious and frustrating process of replacing the filter cartridge, since the rod extends the length of the cartridge and has to be passed through the end plate of the filter cartridge. The filter cartridge then has to be supported up against the dividing wall while a knob is threaded onto the rod. Depending on the size and weight of the filter cartridge this can be a difficult task.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a dust collector which avoids the drawbacks of the prior art as discussed above.
It is more a particular object of the invention to provide a dust collector with secure mounting of the filter cartridges and quick and easy replacement of the filter cartridges.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a dust collector with secure mounting of the filter cartridge with a reliable and effective seal.